Editor's note: Prep2Prep is previewing some of the top girls basketball teams in the Bay Area. Today we take a look at St. Francis of Mountain View.
In last year’s CIF-State Division II NorCal championship game, St. Francis held a seven-point advantage over Lynbrook at the half.
In the third quarter, with the Vikings closing in, coach Brian Harrigan told senior Shelbi Aimonetti “Shelb, I believe in you, you gotta believe in me, and then together we can get this done.”
Aimonetti and the Lancers quickly came to life. They led by 13 after three and finished off Lynbrook, 44-19. The 19 points was the fewest allowed in a regional final. And though the state championship game would be far less kind (St. Francis lost to Lynwood, 39-26), Harrigan and crew were immensely proud of the team’s accomplishments: the NorCal title, a CCS Open Division championship appearance (fell to Mitty), 24 wins, and a whole lot of heart.
In 2013-14, the Lancers will be without Aimonetti, forward Jennifer Lucian, and center Kate Hoey. Lucian and Aimonetti were one and two in scoring at 10.3 and 9.8 points per game.
That leaves the door open for point guard Daisha Abdelkader to rise in the ranks. The spunky 5-foot-3 junior contributed seven points per contest to last year’s squad, with 33 made 3-pointers (second on the team behind Aimonetti). Clay Kallam had this to say: “Abdelkader is an athletic, slender point guard who will get great coaching from Brian Harrigan. She’s a good defender with good footwork, and at the other end, shoots threes and runs the offense.”
Also due to step up is senior forward Lauren Johnson. She only averaged 5.6 points per game last season, but that’s on a usually half-court offense (the team registered 44.8 points per game). Her season-high of 17 came against Archbishop Mitty on the Monarchs’ home floor in January. Beyond Abdelkader and Johnson, it will take a combination of last year’s reserves and newcomers to fill the gaps.
Harrigan came to St. Francis in the summer of 2011 after having earned legendary status at Sacred Heart Cathedral. He turned around a team that had gone 11-14 into an 18-10 squad, then followed up with last season’s success.
“We’ve put our hat on the defensive end, which has been our strength all year,” Harrigan noted shortly before the State Championship. “They believe in themselves, and they believe in the system that we’re running. Everybody has to be doing their role in order for us to be successful.”
The Lancers will rely on that system once again, and talent will determine how far it takes them.
St. Francis participates in the Terra Nova Tournament (12/12-12/14) and the Eastside Prep Tournament (12/27-12/31).
The Lancers also are an invite to the MLK Shootout at Marin Catholic High School (1/20). Home games against top WCAL opponents include Jan. 8 (Mitty), Jan. 23 (Sacred Heart Cathedral), and Feb. 14 (St. Ignatius).
